There has been a lot of discussion about Christian Pulisic and his possible frustration with Chelsea. The club recently replaced Frank Lampard with new manager Thomas Tuchel. Pulisic’s playing time in that time has been less than consistent. Tuchel has included Pulisic in his starting eleven a mere 11 times in 26 opportunities. The lack of opportunity has caused many to speculate he may look to leave the club this summer.
In addition to the lack of starts, it also took almost two months for Pulisic to appear in their Premier League lineups. After watching the second leg of their Champions League matchup against Real Madrid from the bench, the star uncharacteristically admitted to being “very frustrated.”
However, despite the frustration, Pulisic ended speculation he may leave the London club. Saying, “People have always doubted and said: ‘Oh, he’s not playing, does he want to go here, does he want to go there?’ I’m always up for a challenge, I love competing, I love the position I’m in and I’m enjoying my time here.”
Pulisic, in an exclusive interview with ESPN, was asked whether he saw his long-term future at Stamford Bridge. To which he replied: “Yeah, I’m obviously happy here. It has been an incredible two years.”
The 22-year-old joined Chelsea in 2019 after leaving Borussia Dortmund. Christian Pulisic was signed through 2024 for £57.6 million.
Thomas Tuchel
While noting his frustration, Pulisic has also noted the positive changes Tuchel has brought to the club.
“He has brought a lot of structure to our team, defensively especially,” Pulisic said of Tuchel. “We are definitely very solid. I think that’s been our main thing. Offensively as well, we have a lot of options. We kind of understand the system and the positions we are all supposed to play, and that’s really the difference.”
Chelsea has come out on top in 17 of their 26 matchups with Tuchel at the reins. As Pulisic noticed Chelsea’s defense has benefitted the most with 18 of those games being clean sheets.
The clubs success has translated all the way to the Champions League final where they’ll face Manchester City. However, before that matchup Chelsea has an appearance in the FA Cup Final this Saturday on ESPN+.
Just as Pulisic said, he and the London club are up for the challenge and look forward to proving themselves with the new manager.
While Christian Pulisic is certain to be a generational player in football history, Chelsea will determine where this 2021 club will stand in the books of history this weekend. They’ll also fight to win their second Champions League Final, May 28th.
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